Frederick Carder was a self-taught chemist and potter who became world famous for his glass artwork and manufacturing. Born and raised in England, he quit school at 14 and went to work in his grandfather's pottery factory, but to better understand his work he took night courses in chemistry, electricity, metallurgy, physics, and art. He then quit the pottery firm to take employment at Stevens & Williams, an established glass manufacturer, where his vase designs were put into production while Carder was still in his mid-teens. By the early 1890s he was the company's most famous designer, but in 1902 he was passed over for a promotion to Manager, and decided to leave the firm.

On a trip to America, he met with Thomas E. Hawkes, a glass dealer in Corning, New York, and the two men established a new glass firm in Corning. Named for the county, Steuben Glass opened in 1903 and became famous for its delicate, highly-stylized glassware, much of which was iridium-glazed and/or stylishly etched, and its "Aurene" glass with a gauzy translucence and saturated colors. In 1913 Steuben and Carder were sued by Louis Comfort Tiffany for allegedly infringing on Tiffany's trademarked "Favrile" style, but the lawsuit was settled out of court. In 1918 Steuben was acquired by Corning Glass Works, but remained a separate entity under Carder's management. His later works included Venetian style millefiori wares and "intarsia" etched and colored glassware, and in 1933 he oversaw the introduction of "10M glass", now called Steuben crystal, a brilliant glass of near-perfect clarity.

Carder retired from the executive suite at the age of 70, but continued working in Steuben's glass works until he was 96. He died in 1963, a few months after his 100th birthday. Carder's candlesticks, lamps, perfume bottles, table settings, vases, and wine glasses are considered valuable collectibles and occasionally displayed in museums. Steuben Glass was sold by Corning in 2008, and is now privately owned.